untitled

Prophecy Reveals The Future!


Memory verse: “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.” Romans 15:4.

The book of Daniel opens with a little history of who is ruler of Babylon and how the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, had besieged Jerusalem. We see that Jehoiakim was king of Judah. (Jerusalem was a city in Judah.)

In Daniel 1:2 we see that the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel was taken into captivity along with many other Jews. Daniel found himself in the world’s greatest city, Babylon. The princes of royal blood were selected from among the Jews and taken to Babylon to be trained to work for the king.

According to history, it was in the year 605 B.C. that Daniel arrived in Babylon. A few years later, in 586 B.C., King Nebuchadnezzar again went to Jerusalem. This time he destroyed Jerusalem along with its beautiful temple, and took thousands more into captivity. God’s prophets had foretold that all this would happen.

The original city of Babylon was built well before 2,000 B.C. and had grown into a powerful kingdom.

1. Babylon was first known as Babel (and only later as Babylon). In Genesis 10:8–10, find the name of the man who built the city of BabelN__________. He also built other cities.

2. Isaiah the prophet told the king Hezekiah that a day would come when all in his house and all that they had, would be carried to Babylon. Read Isaiah 39:6: “Behold, the days come, that _______ that is in ________ _________, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be ____________ to _____________: ____________ shall be __________, saith the Lord.”

3. In Jeremiah 25:9, we read: “Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the Lord, and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and __________ the ___________ thereof, and against all these nations round about, and will ________ ___________ them, and make them an astonishment, and a hissing, and perpetual desolations.” The prophet Jeremiah had also told the people what was coming. But, why was this going to happen?

4. Why was Judah going to be destroyed? Read Jeremiah 25:4–7 and fill in verse 4: “And the Lord hath __________ unto you all his servants the _________, rising early and sending them; but ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear.”

Read verse 8: “Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts; __________ ye have _______ _______ my __________.” They failed to hear the messages from his prophets and to obey the message God sent to them.

The Lord had permitted these calamities to befall his people because, in their heart, they had already overthrown his kingdom. They had brought in idolatry. They had turned to Babylonian spirit worship and had turned their back on God. God's sentence was passed upon the last king of Judah. Read Ezekiel 21:26, 27: “Thus saith the Lord God; _________ the __________, and take _______ the _________: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. I will overturn, overturn, overturn it: and it shall be no more, ________ ______ [Christ] _________ whose right it is; and I will give it him.” So God let them be taken into captivity to teach them that they needed to be obedient to God's will.

5. Would they always be in captivity? Read Jeremiah 25:8–12 and fill in verse 11: “And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall _________ the king of _________ ___________ years.” No! After seventy years, they would be able to come out of captivity. Their seventy years started with the first siege on Jerusalem, when the first group was taken into captivity. Daniel was in this group (605 B.C.), and here is where both the book of Daniel as well the seventy years of captivity for God's people begins. It happened in the third year of King Jehoiakim’s reign.

6. It would come to pass as Isaiah had predicted in chapter 39, verse 6: “Thine entire house shall be taken to Babylon.” Who does Daniel say was among the captives? Read Daniel 1:3: “And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the _________ _________, and of the ____________.” We believe that Daniel was one of these captives, for he was brought in with others that they might be taught in the language and wisdom of the Chaldeans. (See also verse 4.)

7. There were three other children of Judah that were taken into the king’s palace for training. In Daniel 1:6, we see their names:

H___________, M_____________, A_____________.

Later, in Daniel 1:7, we see their Hebrew names changed to Babylonian ones:

Hananiah to      S________________.

Mishael     to      M________________.

Azariah     to      A_________________.

Daniel       to      B_________________.

8. Daniel and his companions found that the foods of the king's table were not the best foods for good health. What did they request? Read Daniel 1:8–21 and fill in verse 12: “Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us _________ to ________, and ___________ to drink.”

"Pulse” means food derived from plants, such as cereals, vegetables, berries, dates, etc. It was contrary to the Jewish law to eat unclean meats and foods that had been offered to idols. There were many temptations in the heathen court. Daniel and his companions were determined to be temperate and pure. They did a ten-day trial on their simple and natural diet (Daniel 1:14, 15). Many of us would do well on a simpler natural diet. Why not take the ten-day trial and see?

Verse 14 says: “So he consented to them in this matter, and _________ them __________ ___________”; and verse 15 says: “And at the end of ten days their countenances appeared ___________ and ___________ in flesh ________ _________ the children which did _______ the portion of the ___________ _________.”

9. Daniel 1:8 tells us his purpose: “But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would _______ ________ __________ with the portion of the _________ __________, nor with the ___________ which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.” They wanted to live a pure, clean life for God.

10. Did God reward his servants? Read Daniel 1:20: “And in all __________ of _____________ and understanding, that the king inquired of them, he found them ________ ________ _________ than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm.” God's Eden diet has its rewards today.

11. God gave Daniel a special gift. What was it? Read Daniel 1:17: “As for these four children, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel had _________________ in all __________ and ____________.” We will be looking at Daniel's interpretation of the king's dream, coming in some of the lessons, in this series.

12. In Matthew 24:15, what did Jesus call Daniel? He called him, “Daniel the p____________.” A prophet is one who reveals the future. Matthew adds the explanatory note: “Whoso readeth, let him understand” (Matthew 24:15).

13. After the book of Daniel was written, what did God say would happen to it? Read Daniel 12:4: “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and ________ the __________, even to the __________ of the ________: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” The book was to be sealed until the time of the end. Daniel’s book was closed until the 19th Century when God began to reveal what these things in Daniel mean to us in these last days of earth history. It was written for our time.

14. The last book of the Bible is called what? ______________. Revelation reveals Jesus Christ, as you will see in Revelation 1:1: “The _______________ of ___________ ____________, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John.” The book of Revelation was written to reveal Jesus Christ. It also helps us better understand things written in Daniel. Revelation is also a book of prophecy.

15. But there is a promise that goes with the reading and study of Revelation. Revelation 1:3 says: “____________ is he that __________, and they that ________ the ________ of this ____________, and _________ those ___________ which are written therein: for the time is at hand.”

I want the blessing I can get from reading God's Word.


Report Content · · Web Hosting · Blog · Guestbooks · Message Forums · Mailing Lists
Easiest Website Builder ever! · Build your own toolbar · Free Talking Character · Email Marketing
powered by a free webtools company bravenet.com